Four Major Exhibitions in Hong Kong Break Exhibitor Records

A record-breaking 2,900 exhibitors took part in four fairs that opened in early January at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre: the Hong Kong Trade Development Council’s Hong Kong Toys and Games Fair, HKTDC Hong Kong Baby Products Fair, Hong Kong International Stationery Fair and HKTDC Hong Kong International Licensing Show.

More than 106,000 buyers attended the fairs, an increase of five percent, compared with the previous year.

“Most Toy Fair buyers came from the Chinese mainland, Korea, Taiwan, Japan and the United States,” said Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) Deputy Executive Director Benjamin Chau.

He added, “Participation from emerging markets such as Malaysia, Indonesia and the Middle East grew significantly; mature markets like the United Kingdom, Canada and Korea also recorded good increases.”

The HKTDC organized more than 160 buying missions that brought in nearly 10,000 buyers to the four fairs. Among them were major importers and distributors, including the US’s Toys “R”Us, Japan’s Tokyu Hands, Korea’s CJO Shopping, Russia’s Brainy Brats, the mainland’s yhd.comand JD.COM, and Thailand’s The Mall Group.

The Small-Order Zone was once again set up at the Toy Fair, as well as the Baby Products and Stationery fairs.

Some 110 showcases displayed products, which were available in quantities from 20 to 1,000 pieces. Nearly 7,000 buyers visited the zone during the four-day-fair period, generating more than 16,000 business connections.

Response to the Smart-Tech Toys zone was strong. One of the zone’s exhibitors, Roam & Wander Ltd, presented TuTu, a rabbit powered by an iPhone app.

Marketing Manager Casper Chen said that TuTu was popular among buyers. The product was awarded this year's "Best of the Fair: Electronic & Remote Control Toys," at the Hong Kong Toys and Baby Products Awards.

Ken Lo, general manager of educational toy maker Eastcolight, said fair traffic was strong. “The quality of buyers and demand were high,” Lo said, who expects his company’s sales to go up some five percent this year.

Sebastian Wetzel, CFO of Babyloop, a German online shopping site specializing in baby products, said he had found suitable suppliers at the Baby Products Fair. “We plan to buy a variety of products at the fair, including baby bibs, diapers and sleeping bags,” Wetzel said. “We target to place US$80,000-US$100,000 in on-site orders.”

The Toy Fair, the Baby Products Fair and the International Licensing Show were organized by the HKTDC, while the Stationery Fair was organized by the HKTDC and Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd.

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